This is really offensive. Over the past few days, we have seen a significant increase in the number of ‘alarming’ s*xually explicit photos of Fearless hitmaker Taylor Swift. A troubling controversy surrounding artificial intelligence-generated images that have been circulating on social media platforms has put the pop sensation at the center.
As was to be expected, millions of people reshared these photos on the platform, which quickly attracted criticism from a wide range of sources, including the White House as well as the singer’s fans. As per The Verge’s report, an image of this kind amassed an astounding 45 million views.
Fortunately, Swifties—the term used to refer to the worldwide fan base of the singer—found out that the artificial intelligence-generated fake images were the work of a social media user going by the X (previously Twitter) handle Zvbear.
Also Read: Even Elden Ring isn’t Safe From Taylor Swift
Who is Zvbear? ‘Swifties’ Blame Him For The Alleged Explicit Taylor Swift AI Images
We can’t deny how much technology has advanced by leaps and bounds over the past few years. But along the way, the risks that it poses have escalated too. One of the most concerning and devastating consequences of this progress is the emergence of AI-powered deepfakes.
Deepfakes have quickly gained attention for their ability to manipulate and distort reality, and unfortunately, celebrities such as Taylor Swift have become targets. And ‘Swifties’ are not going to stand for this. After the signer’s AI photos went viral and dominated the internet, Swifties alleged that Zvbear was the person behind the scandalous photos.
As was to be expected, he turned all of his social media accounts private as a result. Zvbear’s stepping back to protect himself from the music idol’s fans has caused netizens to react more strongly:
The White House? Yeah ZVBEAR IS FINISHED LMAOOO pic.twitter.com/hbTbRfA3Yk
— Wocc𖤐 (@woccery) January 26, 2024
bro privated his acc and thought he could get away 💀
— Satyam Patel | 𝕏… (@SatyamInsights) January 27, 2024
This dude @Zvbear was a notorious "Milkman" who would slander African women to make European women seem better, & it took fetishing Taylor Swift to take him down.
Now he's hiding after getting doxxed
The irony of all this is that it's white women who were his downfall pic.twitter.com/Gxx9aOi1EW
— Emperor Pyros (@EmperorPyros) January 25, 2024
This is the guy that leaked the Taylor Swift AI pictures and currently went private.@Zvbear its so over bro pic.twitter.com/1IBXJN82Q1
— Neo ☯ (@neolithicobject) January 25, 2024
I really hope Taylor swift has no mercy upon @zvbear . she needs to crack down on him hard and set a might example so that all these other PERVERTS can understand and that cut that shit
— Ash🌷 (@ihateyourei) January 27, 2024
Zvbear is short for Zubear Abdi, as we learned from Marca. He is a 27-year-old citizen of Somalia who resides in Ontario, Canada. According to ThisWasTV, he is a well-known social media influencer who frequently posts explicit content on sites like X, Reddit, and 4chan.
Before making his X account private, ZvBear—who is rumored to be an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Scarborough—had more than 83,000 followers. But it is said that he has lost thousands of followers ever since he acknowledged making explicit photos of the You Belong With Me singer.
Swift fans jumped into action to protect their idol. Swifties organized to report the AI deepfakes in bulk, with one account with over 480,000 followers being banned by X as a result.
The White House Calls For Legislation To Prevent Taylor Swift’s AI Fakes
Taylor Swift’s not-so-tolerable experience has “alarmed” the White House press secretary, who told ABC News on Friday that Congress
“Should take legislative action.”
White House Correspondent Karen L. Travers of ABC News was informed by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre:
“We are alarmed by the reports of the…circulation of images that you just laid out – of false images to be more exact, and it is alarming. While social media companies make their own independent decisions about content management, we believe they have an important role to play in enforcing their own rules to prevent the spread of misinformation, and non-consensual, intimate imagery of real people.”
Also Read: Taylor Swift Breaks Spotify Record Even Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga Couldn’t
The singer’s explicit, deep fakes that went viral on social media this week have also drawn criticism from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who informed NBC News’ Lester Holt:
“First of all, absolutely this is alarming and terrible, and so therefore yes, we have to act, and quite frankly all of us in the tech platform, irrespective of what your standing on any particular issue is — I think we all benefit when the online world is a safe world… I don’t think anyone would want an online world that is completely not safe for both for content creators and content consumers.”
Swift has not publicly addressed the deepfakes, but according to a Daily Mail article, the pop singer is definitely upset.
Anyway, the rise of such explicit AI deepfakes is definitely an “alarming” and “terrible” phenomenon that requires immediate attention and action. As technology advances at an unprecedented rate, so do our strategies for combating the threats it poses. Only through a collaborative effort can we protect celebrities like Taylor Swift and society as a whole from the terrifying consequences of explicit AI deepfakes.
